The Wedding of the Century is past, leaving us 94 more years to wait until another wedding to go down that will catch our eye, our imaginations, and maybe even… our hearts. Now, I’ll admit, I have been very cynical as to the T’Challa and Ororo courtship, whirlwind romance and marriage, when I realized that the hype was right, that this was the real Wedding of the Century because this is going to have not only a huge impact on the characters, but possibly the Marvel Universe itself.Ororo Munroe is the only African American Mutant Goddess I know of. She has recently married one of the most powerful political leaders on the planet, T’Challa, King of Wakanda. A long strange journey from orphaned street rat to ‘perennial leadership’ of an underground society and a debatable anti-terrorist organization. A lot has been done with the character since her inception, giving her this great depth and drama. Even Hallie Berry asks for Storm to take a greater role in things in the X-Men movies. Despite the viewpoint that getting a character married seems to be this ‘death knell’ for character interest and story writing, Storm’s marriage has the possibility of catapulting her into the spotlight.
If she has a baby, she could become one of if not the most powerful woman in the Marvel Universe.
A heir ensures her title and (unless Wakandan monarchy works differently) being the mother of the heir supersedes being the mother of the current king. Wakandans would adore her as their future and fate is secure and Ororo’s been a fine mentor to Kitty Pryde and a strong member of the X-Men and the school, so I have a feeling she’d be a pretty good mom.
Black Panther could involve himself in international affairs without worrying about the future of his country and his responsibilities. With Ororo in charge, he can be assured that the country is in good hands. There are plenty of people to assist her not to mention T’Challa’s mother to get her get on her feet as a Queen.
But she’s also a goddess too. The wedding issue was kind enough to remind us all that Storm is still worshipped by some tribes as a deity. Before hooking up with her long lost love, Storm was traveling the African countryside looking for mutant poachers and doing a pretty damn fine job. I’d say she made a favorable impression on the locals, saving their children, running about with wild animals, all that stuff. Word of her would spread, not to mention hearing about the big wedding in the mysterious and fabled land of Wakanda. How long do you think it would take before pilgrimages would be made to Wakanda to see the goddess, Storm? I mean, people make pilgrimages to see Graceland and Elvis is dead. Storm is alive and well and can very well help your crops if you ask nicely.
When these people get to Wakanda, Ororo has two big options: one, she can accept these people into Wakanda as citizens, something that might not go over very well considering how isolationist they are. Or, she can go out, meet and greet, then send them on their way. They can’t stay there, but she’s not one to hole her self up in a castle and hide from her devotees or send Wakandan guards to do her talking for her. She’s a Queen now, so being a Goddess again isn’t that much of a two-step. Should she send them away, maybe helping them out if she can, the followers could go back to their homes and bring back living proof of a religion that died when the deity moved away. This would create more followers, more pilgrimages and possibly… more influence.
I can hope that this wasn’t just a fly-by-night ‘Hey, let’s get the two black characters hitched’ idea. This was a land grab in Africa. Played smart, played politically, Wakanda could become the capital of the continent and this would put not only a mutant, not only a person of color, but a woman of strong and noble bearing into a spotlight that only held US Presidents, Doctor Doom and Prince Namor. A force for good. A force for change. A mother and a warrior and a Queen.
August 23rd, 2006 at 1:05 pm
Over the past few months, it has confused me as to why Joe Q. and Marvel seems to be against the Peter Parker/MJ marriage, but it’s ok for Storm and Black Panther? Sounds racist to me. It’s like Marvel is against white people getting married. I mean look what they did to Cyclops and Jean. Look what they are doing to Reed and Susan Richards. …yep. They are definitely against white people marrying.
August 23rd, 2006 at 1:33 pm
Are you serious, Scott? I can’t tell well over the internets.
Panther/Storm is the only black couple in mainstream comics I can think of that’s actually married, save for Robbie Robertson and his off-panel wife.
They may be one of the very few black couples in superhero comics, period.
August 23rd, 2006 at 2:00 pm
I’m still put off by the whole goddess thing. It doesn’t seem characteristic of Ororo to encourage or let people believe that she is a goddess. She knows that her powers are the result of mutation and not divinity. Not setting the record straight seems deceitful and below some of Ororo’s character and integrity.
What decent human being would allow people to believe that he or she is a god?
August 23rd, 2006 at 2:02 pm
The “marvel is racist” comments – were said with sarcasim.
The fact that editoral staff says marriages are bad and are very against Peter Parker and MJ being married, but then they go ahead and hook up Storm and Black Panther – does confuse me.
August 23rd, 2006 at 2:10 pm
Godess-empress of Africa. These are shallow views of religon, poltics, and the people of Africa.
August 23rd, 2006 at 3:30 pm
The fact that editoral staff says marriages are bad and are very against Peter Parker and MJ being married, but then they go ahead and hook up Storm and Black Panther – does confuse me.
I’m not sure why it confuses you. Marvel, or more accurately, Quesada, has never said that marriages in general are bad things. His stated position is that it was a bad thing for Spider-Man, who’s hook is that he’s that down on his luck whipping boy. Having a wife, especially one who used to be a model, moves away from that. No one has complained about Reed and Sue being married because it still fits in with the idea of family adventures.
Godess-empress of Africa. These are shallow views of religon, poltics, and the people of Africa.
I haven’t heard the empress bit, but the goddess thing is extremely shallow. It’s not like Kenya is, you know, directly to the south of a country that was introduced to Christianity in the fourth century, AD. Oh, wait– it is! :O
Africa in comics is too often treated as Egypt, South Africa, and Everything Else.
I can hope that this wasn’t just a fly-by-night ‘Hey, let’s get the two black characters hitched’ idea.
I’ve never understood why anyone thinks that this was the reason behind the marriage. I’m not accusing the author of the post of holding this idea by any means, but I’ve heard talk in both the comic shop and on the internets that the only reason Marvel did the marriage was because the two were black and in Africa. Did people say this when Reed and Sue got hitched? “Hey, they’re white and in North America, why not hook them up?” :/
August 23rd, 2006 at 5:25 pm
>>>>>>. Did people say this when Reed and Sue got hitched? “Hey, they’re white and in North America, why not hook them up?” :/>>>>>>>>>
The difference being that while there were many white superheroes running around NA Black Panther and Storm are just about the only two black people from Africa with any real star power in the Marvel universe.
To me though it’s less about race and more about just pushing two powerful characters together because they have one or two things in common. It’s like marrying off Superman and Wonder Women, an act that ignores each characters history and the respective supporting characters that surrounded them.
It could have worked if Marvel had invested some time in building a relationship between the two over time. But they didn’t so it feels like a gimmick.
August 23rd, 2006 at 6:20 pm
I agree Carla. I was on the fence about this WEDDING OF THE CENTURY but I’m sold. Here’s hoping the product of a Storm/Black Panther union is a Thundercat.
August 23rd, 2006 at 10:16 pm
Which is precisly why Storm will get divorced. Or the marriage will be retconned out of exsistence twenty years from now.
Just wait for it.
August 24th, 2006 at 2:46 am
Did people say this when Reed and Sue got hitched? “Hey, they’re white and in North America, why not hook them up?”
How about: No, because they were in the same book from the start?
If it seems perfectly natural to you, that two characters with no prior history worth speaking of happen to hook up because they’re from the same continent surely that’s a problem between you and reality.
For comparison, look to JJ and Luke Cage. That was set up well, given time to develop and then ended in marriage. No one complained. Which might have more than a little to do with the fact Bendis likely didn’t intend to wed them in Alias #1. Whereas in the case of BP and Storm, the wedding was announced before the hasty retcons to give them some semblance of a history were writen.
_Most_ fans can tell the difference and interpret accordingly.
August 24th, 2006 at 2:43 pm
Panther/Storm is the only black couple in mainstream comics I can think of that’s actually married, save for Robbie Robertson and his off-panel wife.
Robertson’s marriage is one of the most complex and detailed marriaged depicted in mainstream comic books. If the Spider-Man marriage had half the depth and reality of the Robertson marriage, talk of separating Parker and Watson wouldn’t exist.
August 24th, 2006 at 6:44 pm
Don’t get attached. I think Quesada sees the same narrative restriction in all marriage, but he’s star-struck by Hudlin. Once Hudlin goes away, likely so will this marriage.
August 25th, 2006 at 1:06 am
This is all part of a clever plan to lure Alan Moore into writing for Marvel. They’ll buy the rights to “WATCHMEN” and then give it back to Moore. The hook is going to be that Black Panther and Storm grow up to be Rorschach’s prison psychiatrist and his wife.
August 26th, 2006 at 9:56 pm
To Lisa,
I honestly don’t see the marriage ending for a few reasons.
1. Hudlin’s having too much fun with Black Panther to leave any time soon despite his job at BET.
2. Because Hudlin is BET’s entertainment president, that opens doors for Marvel comics starring Black heroes to be plugged.
Hence, it’s no surprise that in July, Black Panther #18 was featured on entertainment news show, The Black Carpet. (That may partly explain the sales boost.)
3. Black romance overall simply is a more lucrative market than comics. Check out the panel discussion at Silver Bullet Comics on this topic:
http://www.silverbulletcomicbooks.com/panel/114864350060432.htm
So, divorcing Black Panther and Storm would not only reinforce the detrimental “for Whites only” image of comics, but also limit long term prospects of tapping into the Black romance market.
Considering how comics STILL aren’t were they were over a decade ago, the industry needs all the new readers it can get. And that includes those who don’t fit the Simpsons Comic Book Guy stereotype.
August 26th, 2006 at 10:18 pm
To David Brothers,
I also don’t understand the “Storm and Black Panther hooked up just because their Black” complaint. The best explanation is from Reggie Hudlin himself when he was interviewed by blogger Jennifer Daniels:
Daniels: “Some folks are going to dislike the wedding, and that’s one thing. But there are readers who seem to be very unsettled at the thought of Storm having a sexual relationship with Panther, even though they are engaged to be married. It’s my belief that had Storm and Wolverine been in that jet plane (in BP #15), no one would’ve made a peep. But because it’s Black Panther, it’s a big problem. I can’t help but feel that race is an issue, because I’ve seen too many people try to say this wedding is because they’re both black, completely disregarding they relationship they’ve had since Marvel Team-Up #100 over 20 years ago.”
Hudlin’s response: “For the small but vocal contengent who write stuff like OOC, and expect everyone to understand what that means…. what it really means is “why would Storm choose Black Panther?” He’s doesn’t have superpowers, he’s not a mutant, he’s not as popular as her…and the big unspoken one – he’s black. To readers like those, Storm is the kind of black woman who, regardless of who she might really be, is percieved to be a white man’s woman more than a black man’s woman. So for Storm to pick a man like T’Challa over Wolverine or Gambit or Forge makes them feel betrayed. OJ level betrayed. Like they found out the black person they liked…was black. Like all those other black people out there they don’t like.”
You can read the whole interview here:
http://itsthejoint.net/Exclusive:_Interview_w/Reginald_Hudlin
Hudlin’s comments are spot on. Like the larger American society, there are White people in comics who feel that a Black woman is “ugly” unless she dates or marries a White guy. Sure, these bigoted White fans won’t admit this, but it’s no less true.
Isn’t it sad that a human/android marriage is concerned more “normal” than two Black people getting hitched? Well, that would explain why comic fans still have a time shedding the immature, ignorant and delusional fanboy stereotype.
August 27th, 2006 at 10:18 pm
Zeraze — You are a far more optimistic person than I if you feel those reasons will prevent storm from being hacked to bits to free up Black Panther romantically. Hudlin’s enjoying himself now, but he’s a TV guy. His attention will be drawn elsewhere, and the creative team will change. And what do you think a new creative team will do with a marriage?
I am across the board against female teambook characters being married to solo male heroes, because that leads to out of character subordinate women who eventually get maligned and tossed aside for the main character’s narrative.
When someone decides romantic tension will be interesting, which point of view do you think we’ll see in Black Panther? Which partner is more likely to be cast unfavorably, as the one who wronged the other?
It’s one thing when its a character from the same team (Jean and Scott, Reed and Sue), or a supporting cast member (Mary Jane) — but it’s another thing entirely when its an independant female uprooted from her home franchise to support another character.
And this is me giving Hudlin the benefit of the doubt by expecting it won’t happen in his run…
Storm and Black Panther shouldn’t be married, neither should Nightwing and Oracle. It makes Fridge-bait.